State already has tough bioterrorism laws

The Associated Press

OLYMPIA — In the event of a bioterrorism attack, Washington state officials already have emergency powers to detain people, take over hospitals or destroy property.

A broadly worded law written more than 30 years ago empowers local health officers to take whatever action is needed to contain an outbreak of deadly disease such as smallpox, The News Tribune of Tacoma reported Saturday.

Such actions could also include massive quarantines and forcing people to have vaccinations and other medical treatments.

"It’s a very simple statement that’s very broad," said Mary Selecky, secretary of the state Health Department. "What we want is the ability to intervene, protect and prevent."

Health officers in Washington have used the law in cases involving tuberculosis when the only way to get an individual to take medication was to put the person in a hotel room with a guard at the door, she said.

Selecky said she cannot recall a case when the state seized a hospital or business, or destroyed property — the furniture of a person with a highly contagious disease, for example.

But such actions could be taken in the event of a bioterrorism attack, she said.

Earlier this week, Gov. Gary Locke and Attorney General Christine Gregoire released a list of increased penalties, new background checks and public records closures aimed at addressing potential acts of terrorism.

None addressed bioterrorism. Fred Hellberg, a senior policy adviser to Locke, said officials saw no gaps in the existing law’s potential use for bioterrorist attacks.

The Bush administration has been urging states to adopt the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act, which was created at John Hopkins University and Georgetown University. The model law includes 40 pages of legal code on implementing emergency powers. In some cases, the National Guard would be called in to enforce them.

Selecky said she did not know how Washington’s emergency health powers would be enforced.

"It’s sort of the practical application of it. If there’s a natural disaster and I tell everybody in a certain geographic area they shouldn’t drink the water, what’s my ability to enforce that?" Selecky asked.

Sen. Pat Thibadeau, chairwoman of the Senate Health and Long-term Care Committee, questions the idea that the state could take over a hospital. She was not aware that Washington law already gave health officials such authority.

"Good grief. What are we doing?" said Thibadeau,

D-Seattle. "I just think we’re leaping into some things."

Jerry Sheehan, lobbyist for the Washington chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said the idea makes him uncomfortable. But nothing can be done about it until the state actually tries to implement some of the emergency powers.

At that point, he said, the ACLU might challenge them in court.

Thibadeau and Rep. Eileen Cody, D-Seattle, plan to convene a joint House and Senate Health Care Committee meeting Dec. 13 in Burien to discuss that issue and other war-related health topics.